Trailer stand



C. V. ECKERT TRAILER STAND April 14, 1953 Filed April 2, 1947 IN VEN TOR. 64, 0 6 1 Kerf 1 TTOR/YE),

Patented Apr. 14, 1953 UNITED STAT Es PATENT OFFICE TRAILER s'rANo: Clyde V.Eckert, Seattle,Wash-.

Application April 2, 1947; Serial N6. 733,791

This invention relates to a trailer stand, particularly a. stand for giving support to a twowheeled trailer during those periods when the latter is disconnected from a towing vehicle therefor. The object of the invention is the provision in thehead wall in forwardly removed relation of a conveniently operated stand arranged and.

adapted to be applied to the front end of an automotive trailer, which may be easily adjusted to diiferent heights and thus readily adapts itself to irregularities in the contour of the ground on which the trailer may be parked, and which may stands produced in accordance with the now-w preferred embodiment of the present invention, full and dotted lines being employed to portray said stand in its operating and inoperative positions, respectively.

Fig. 2 is a similar View excepting that the showing of the trailer is limited to only a minor part of the frame, and the scale employed is enlarged from that of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical sectional view on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view on line 4-4 I of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary transverse vertical sectional view detailing the height-adjusting feature of the stand.

In the drawing, the reference numeral [0 indicates the body of a two-wheeled car-trailer, and II and I2 represent the side girders and crossmembers, respectively, of a suitable frame structure therefor. The stand of the present invention is hung from said frame structure, there being preferably two such stands located one at the left-front corner and the other at the rightfront corner of the trailer, and inasmuch as the construction of these two stands is identical a descripion of one will suffice. As a mounting for each stand, a hanger is welded or otherwise rigidly secured to the underside of the frame, and this hanger, which preferably is a casting, presents a head wall I3 from which depends a backwall plate l4 and laterally spaced side-wall or cheek plates I5-I6, the back wall being characterized in that the angle which is described between this wall and the head wall is somewhat less than a right angle, preferably 85, Formed from the back wall is'a verticalaperture IL: and there is provided in the'cheek plates and'placed below the lower limit of the back wall a respective vertical slot aligned. I

I8, these slots being transversely Received by its upper end between the cheek plates of the han'gera'nd connecting for floating pivotal 'movement with the. latter by a pin 20 which works in the slots I8 is a pipe section 2! having an overall length somewhat shorter than the distance to which the underside of the frame is elevated above the road surface, and telescopicallyassociated with the lower end of this pipe section is a second pipe section 22 flanged at the bottom to form a bearing foot 23. This foot is angularly offset'from-the axial line of the telescoping pipes in a degree corresponding to the angularity between the back and head walls of the hanger, and which is to say 85? if the preferred and previously given example is to obtain. :There isbored diametrically through each of the two pipes a series of vertically spaced horizontal holes 24 and 25, respectively, and the spacing between the holes of one said series differs from that of the holes of the other said series. This is to say, for example, that the spacing between the holes of the outer pipe is 2" whereas the spacing between the holes of the inner pipe is 1 This assures a quite fine adjustment of the overall-length of the two pipes as a selected one of the outside holes is brought into registration with one of the inside holes, the pipes being then interlocked by inserting a pin 26 through the registering holes. As a means of holding the pin against dislodgement when the stand is not in use, I thread the end of the pin and weld a nut 21 upon the outside of the pipe 22 in a position whereat the same will register with one of the holes 24, and to facilitate the act of turning the pin when threading orunthreading the same into or from the nut the pin is provided with a handle 28. It will, of course, be understood that this threading action of the pin is of value only when the stand is swung upwardly from the full-line into the dotted-line position of Figs. 1 and 2. When the stand is in its working position, any one of the three holes 24 may perforce be used.

When the stand occupies its working position, the arrangement is one in which the upper part of the inner pipe 2| bears against the hangers back wall [4' while at the same time bringing the head wall 13 of the hanger firmly to rest upon the head end of the pipe, and it can be here pointed out that the purpose in providing an angle of less than 90 between the back wall and the head wall is to cause the lower end of the telescoping pipes to be canted forwardly and thus resist any tendency of the stand structure to jack-knife. This jack-knifing is further preeluded by a lock comprised of a bolt 30 carried for vertical sliding movement by a bracket 3| which is .fast to the pipe 2|, a spring urging this bolt into :soc'keted engagement in the aperture ill of the hanger wall l3.

The operation of the invention is as follows:

Assuming that the trailer has been moved onto a parking spot, and that it is desired to disengage the trailer from the towing vehicle therefor and support the front end of the trailer uprm its stands, the operator first applies :a jack :under the substantial center of the trailers front end and, after disconnecting the trailer coupling, disengages the two stands from the hook catches :32 therefor and :swings the same adovmwardly. The .footingifiange w illrnow .beclearaof itheiground and the :pivot 'pin 2.0 will :rest upon the :lower end of the slots .18. separator then .uremoves e'the adjusting pin -26, :and the zfianged pipe llfGSPOI-lsively drops until the foot 23 rests upon the ground.

The operator snow :raises "the rupper pipe in the degree necessary to ":bring none nf'theZ-holes 23 into registration with trme o'f the holes 2.4, and pin 26 is "then re-inserted throughztheseregistering holes. Removing the jack, :eatter performing this procedure :on both stands, :allows zthe lfi OIlt end f the trailer to settle very slightlyiimtil tthe head walls of the two hangers meet upon the 'related pipes 2|.

The described trailens'tand and the manner tof its operation will, it is believed, be clear from the foregoing. 'Various departures from the enibodiment which I have' here eledted te illustra te may 4 to be implied by reason of having particularly described such illustrated embodiment. It is my intention that the hereto annexed claim be read with the broadest scope commensurate with the language used.

What I claim is:

As a trailer stand: a hanger carried by the trailer .to occupy a position .upon the underside and forward send of the latter and formed with top, back, and side walls to present a box-like socket open front and bottom, said side walls being prolonged below the back wall, a supporting rand trunnion and slot means associated with the upper end portion of the post and the "sidewallprolongations to swingably support the .gp ost zforwmoyement from a substantially horizontal inactive position lower than the back wall whereatmost of the length of the post is located rearwardly of the hanger into a functioning posi- "tion whereat the upper end QfflZl'IBpO'St is socketed "within the hanger :and bears both against the "back: "wall and the top-Wall of the hanger :to 'support the trailer 'mdependently =of said trunnion and slo't means.

CLYDE V. ECKERT.

References Cited in "the like of this patent UNITED -STATES PATENTS "Number Name Date 786,054 Roy Mar. '28, 1905 1,738,205 Reidenbaugh Dec. 3, 1929 158125967 Long July "7, 1931 11832382 'Leupen Nov. 1-7, 1931 2,162,181 Skinner June 13,1939 2,372,705 vBicker Apr. "3, 1945 '2;51 9,364 Freiih'oln'l Aug. '22, 1950 FOREIGN .BA'JZENII'S Number :Date

8251-59 France Feb. 24, 1938 

